Small and Medium-Sized EMS companies rely on Viscom

Editor: Staff Editor

Viscom AG has continued to expand its market share in the field of small and medium-sized companies. In 2011 alone, approximately 160 inspection systems were delivered to German customers with one to ten SMT lines. 80 percent of those were companies with revenues under € 10 million.

Small and medium-sized companies are increasingly opting for AOI and AXI systems. They consider this decision for quality to be an investment in the future and often as a competitive advantage as well. Many of these small and medium-sized businesses specialize in low-volume high-mix production and produce only small lots, but often with a complex, challenging placement of equipment. Therefore, first-class product quality is a basic requirement for success. A high performing inspection system can safeguard the required quality and further optimize the SMT process, lowering production costs significantly.
This is further confirmed by Klaus Spiecker, Head of Series Production at Ritter Elektronik GmbH in Remscheid, Germany. The company has employed an AOI system from Viscom for years and has, among other things, drastically reduced the costs of ICT. "Before AOI was introduced, an informed, timely optimization of the SMD process was not possible since visual inspection and ICT were employed at the end of the production," stated Spiecker. "Thanks to AOI and the process optimization it enables, fewer boards fail during ICT, so time for repair and retests are omitted. This results in a significant cost reduction."
When deciding on the purchase of an inspection system, it is especially important to those responsible to ensure that in five or ten years' time, the systems will still be able to test all component parts in a trustworthy and economically efficient manner. This will only be guaranteed if the manufacturer constantly invests in research and development, and ensures optimal support and a long-term cooperation. In doing so, many of the smaller companies benefit from the wealth of experience that has been built by Viscom with and for its large customers.
Erik Rommens from Rommtech B. V., a small EMS company with 35 employees, agrees: "Apart from the technological advantages, the good reputation of Viscom in the market was an additional asset. If larger OEM companies opt for Viscom, this is of benefit for us too, e. g. in the form of new inspection patterns and software add-ons."